Page 8

THREE

Dani sprinted—more like slid—down the side of the mountain. Probably making enough racket for the gunmen to pinpoint their precise location. But she didn’t care.

Something bad had happened in these woods, and she’d seen it with her own eyes.

Everything within her told her to flee. Now.

Random images swirled around her but not enough to create a full picture. The sound of a gunshot echoed in her mind. Josh. Shot.

Instead of reliving that moment, her thoughts flashed back to his face that Tuesday morning when she’d followed Josh into the break room and begged him to go to Alaska with her.

She’d been so sure of herself, confident that this story would pan out and she’d be back on top of her career.

And she couldn’t handle the other cameraman that’d jumped at the chance to go on the trip.

Ben had asked her out repeatedly, and she had a rule about dating coworkers.

She trusted Josh not to hit on her the whole trip.

He’d reluctantly agreed to accompany her. They’d even talked about having some time for sightseeing.

How na?ve she’d been.

Grizz caught her elbow. “Slow down, take your time. We need to look out for?—”

A bullet exploded into a tree trunk next to them, sending wood chips flying.

“Time to go, princess.” Grizz grabbed her arm and raced through the trees.

She struggled to keep up with his punishing pace as he cut through the brush where there was no trail in sight. Apparently, he wanted them to forge their own path—anything to get away from the gunmen. The man knew his way around the trees, zigzagging through the forest.

After they had run at marathon pace in silence for what seemed like an eternity, she slowed, unable to keep up anymore. She heard nothing behind them but was afraid to look. “Do you think we lost them?”

Grizz slowed his pace to match hers. “I don’t see them, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t right behind us.

And we’ve gone in the opposite direction of the ATV.

We’ll need to backtrack at some point so we can make our way to the cabin.

The trail is still washed out. Getting far away from the compound will be the safest option. ”

“No.” She stopped, putting her fists on her hips. “We still need to find Josh.”

He glared at her, nostrils flaring. “Are you crazy? Men with guns are chasing us through the woods. I care about finding Josh, but?—”

“No buts.” She stood strong in the face of his anger, her burning desire to do right by Josh prevailing. “It’s my fault that he came out here in the first place. I won’t leave him behind.”

The tight crinkles around his eyes relaxed.

“Fine. I think I know where we are, and there’s a cave we can hide in until we know the coast is clear.

But we’re not equipped to do anything more than defend ourselves against these men.

We need to get help, or we’ll be overpowered.

I have a gun, but we may be outnumbered, and they seem to have some pretty sophisticated firepower. ”

Dani nodded and trudged next to Grizz. He moved tree branches out of her way while they walked.

“Why is it your fault, Dani? Josh came out here of his own free will. You couldn’t have known this would happen.”

She huffed out a breath. “He didn’t want to come. I convinced him to make the trip from DC because he’s one of the few people at work that I trust. I had to get the story.”

He guided her by the elbow to change direction. How did he know where they were going? All the trees and rocks looked the same, as if they were walking in circles.

“Tell me more about this story you were working on. You said your boss gave you some sort of ultimatum?”

She flinched. “I said that? Well, I guess it doesn’t matter. Everyone knows I’m a failure.” She ran her fingers through her blonde hair, shaking a fistful of mud onto the ground.

He waited for her to continue.

She dropped her hands to her sides, fists clenched tight.

“Do you remember, around three years ago, hearing about a senator who’d embezzled money in a real-estate scam?

I was the reporter who broke the story about Senator Geoff Deville.

The story went national after he bilked a lot of people out of money in the investment scheme.

There was a trial, and he was acquitted, but not before the public ridiculed him and his wife left him.

He was found innocent, and apparently someone else was behind the whole thing.

He came off looking like a victim, and my story became a complete work of fiction. ”

She huffed out a long breath. “The public turned on me. I became the laughingstock of journalism, and the senator became a victim of sloppy reporting. This lead in Alaska was… is my way to stay in the public’s good graces.

I can’t fail. I won’t fail. Second place is still losing.

My boss told me not to come home without a story, so that’s what I’ll do. ”

Her resolve began to crumble. Here she was, covered from head to toe in mud, revealing her biggest regret.

And Grizz remained silent. Because he agreed with those people who had messaged her on social media and told her she should quit? Or with the guy at the store who’d cornered her in produce and told her she was the worst kind of person?

She’d shared her story with him. Now it was his turn. “So, Grizz, what’s your deal? I’m sure there’s a reason you’re living in the woods by yourself. What’s your story?”

He stomped on.

She stepped in front of him and faced him. “I’m a reporter, you know. I can see you’ve got secrets, and I’m the best there is at getting people to talk.”

More growling. “Less talking, more walking.”

“Ah. So there’s something to talk about.”

He marched around her. “Sure. I live at the Midnight Sun base camp all summer long. End of story.”

She followed him, certain that was not the end of it—or the beginning.

“Please, tell me what happened. It might make me trust you more. Because the jury’s still out on if you’re a good guy or a total creep who just happens to be keeping me alive.

You yelled at me when we first met. I’ve never been talked down to by anyone like that. What gives?”

“I didn’t yell.” His voice echoed and he winced. He lowered his tone. “Okay, I may have raised my voice. But you came to the wrong camp to ask for help. Why would you want a ‘lukewarm shot’ to help you anyway?”

And there it was.

That horrible moniker her station had splashed across every screen in the country after a wildfire had burned too close to some expensive homes. “Why do you have to be such a brute? I had nothing to do with that story and the name. I told my producers it was a terrible idea.”

He reached for her elbow, but she folded her arms. “I believe we’ve already had this conversation.”

He shot her a look. “How noble of you to defend us lowly backcountry hicks. But you have no idea what hotshots do. You live in your DC high-rise with no clue how to survive in the real world. You shouldn’t have been poking around the Alaskan mountains looking for trouble.”

Dani shot him a look right back in his smug face.

“I’m not as ditzy as you make me out to be.

Skye’s my friend, remember? I’ve heard her stories about smokejumpers.

I even thought it would make a nice news piece one day.

But are we really going to have this argument in the middle of the forest with gunmen on our tail, Mr. Hotshot?

If I hadn’t come here, you guys might have never found the compound.

Now the authorities will take the threat seriously. ”

He stopped and she turned to face him.

“Don’t worry. I don’t need you to save me. I can take care of myself.”

“Like I said before, nothing is stopping you.” He waved his arms as if to usher her forward.

Dani pivoted and stormed off in the opposite direction, just to prove her point. The man was infuriating. Sure, she liked to be clean, tucked into her warm bed, not traipsing around the mud and?—

Grizz tackled her like a linebacker and took her to the ground. A bullet whizzed by the place she’d just stood. Her face hit the dirt, and his weight on her knocked the air from her lungs. He rolled off her, grabbed her arm, and had them running in the span of half a second.

Oh no. It turned out she actually did need this man.

Being wrong was the worst.

* * *

Every time he opened his mouth, he proved Dani right.

He’d vowed he’d be nice from now on, but she’d dug her heels in and turned all reporter on him. And that poked the bear in him.

Why do you have to be such a brute? Her question gnawed at his twisted insides.

He didn’t owe her answers—he just needed to get them off the mountain. Alive. Then he’d be rid of the reporter, and the authorities could raid that compound. It wasn’t his job to get involved any more than handing the information over to the FBI.

There! A rock formation with a hollowed-out section at the base. He dropped to the ground and slid through the opening.

He pulled Dani by the arm, and they ducked into the crevice between the rocks. There was barely enough room for his six-foot-two frame, but he managed to tuck her in next to him. Hopefully the gunmen would be looking up and miss the opening.

“Are we safe?” Dani whispered, her face close to his.

His arms were wrapped around her, and her hair tickled his nose.

Crunching sounds stopped his reply before the words could form. Through the fissure in the rocks, he saw Army-issued black boots topped with cargo pants.

“Do you see them?” a voice called out.

“Negative.”

“Let’s get to the compound and make sure they didn’t double back.”

The steps retreated, but he still held his breath, afraid to move. Dani trembled and made a squeak. Her whole body went rigid.

Please, please, Dani. Don’t make a sound.

What had her spooked?—

Something brushed against his leg, and he instinctively tried to kick it away in the small confines. The animal hissed.

Not good.

“What is that thing?” Dani whispered.